Earth
Earth (地球, Chikyuu), also called the Dragon World, is a planet inhabited by humans, animals, plants, demons, vampires, majins, aliens, and other beings. It is the home of the Z Fighters, and the main setting for the entire ''Dragon Ball'' series. It is also the main setting to the other Akira Toriyama's series, Dr. Slump and Nekomajin, as well as the one-shots Wonder Island, Tomato, Today's Highlight Island, Pola & Roid, Escape, Pink, Dub & Peter 1, and Sand Land. Overview Characteristics Earth is a very advanced planet of the North Galaxy (though the Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, and Dragon Ball GT saga takes place in the Ages 700 and 800s; see age system below). Flying vehicles, capsules that can shrink inanimate objects down to pocket size, robots, and other near-future science fiction staples are common-place on Earth. The architecture is also more advanced. The buildings are usually rounded, often employing spherical or ovoid sections held aloft by a cylindrical stem. Certain elements of magic also coexist with the advanced science. Politically, Earth has a planet-wide constitutional monarchy. It is divided into 43 "sectors", led by a King of the Earth. There is also a large military force on earth, for use when threats loom over the world. The dating system is also quite different. While the length and divisions of the year seem to be identical to the Gregorian Calendar, years are reckoned by the age system (エイジ, Eiji; "Age" or "Before Age").Daizenshuu & other ''Dragon Ball'' databooks The standard currency is Zeni, which is mostly mentioned at the World Martial Arts Tournament, and the video game Dragon Ball Z Budokai games. In the World Tournament in Dragon Ball Z: Budokai, second place is 5,000 Zeni and first place gives 10,000 Zeni. With the exception of most of the notable characters in the series, most of Earth's inhabitants seem to suffer from Sunnydale Syndrome. Despite the obviously staggering power of the Saiyans and the rest of the Z Fighters, most of the populace believes Mr. Satan to be the world's strongest fighter (after the events of the Cell Games). They continue to believe this even after several pathetic losses to various foes, due in part to Mr. Satan's ability to convince them that his opponents cheated somehow. Even when directly confronted with evidence directly contradicting Mr. Satan, they continue to believe him responsible for many of the major victories in the series. In the Dragon Ball universe, all planets benefit from an appointed deity. Throughout most of Dragon Ball, the God of the Earth is Kami (called Guardian of the Earth in the English dubs), but later that position was given to Dende after Kami had fused with Piccolo to battle the androids and Cell. Because both Kami and Dende are Namekian, they have the ability to create seven Dragon Balls, which can grant wishes if all seven are collected. These wishes are used regularly throughout Dragon Ball for many various things, usually bringing people back to life. Inhabitants The Earth is primarily dominated by Humans. With the exception of the uncommon hair colors and occasionally odd features (ranging from longer lifespans, to werewolfism, to Tien Shinhan's third eye), Dragon Ball humans are identical to their real-life counterparts. Humans in Dragon Ball seem to be able to utilize or be affected by certain elements of magic. Toriyama himself has admitted to lack of forethought or planning when it comes to the details of Dragon Ball's story, which accounts for some of the strange occurrences."Shenron's Newspaper", Daizenshuu 2 (limited edition). An archived translation can be found here. Following the destruction of their original home planet, Earth becomes the new home of Goku and Vegeta (the last surviving pure-blooded Saiyans) and their hybrid children. Due to the biological similarities Saiyans have with Humans, the two species are able to interbreed, producing hybrids that are just as fertile as their parents. In addition to the Saiyans residing at Earth, it has become the home of several Namekians including Kami, Piccolo, and Dende, as well as Majin Buu. When compared to other species of Dragon Ball, the average human is significantly weak (one drastic exception to this rule is Uub, the reincarnation of Kid Buu). It is said that a single Saiyan infant would be capable of destroying the general population on its own. However, a select few humans have learned to use ki and are among the strongest beings in the universe. Even with such abilities, this select group of humans are still considerably weaker than many aliens with the same ki-manipulation abilities. As stated in the ''Dragon Ball'' manga, it is possible for any human to use their ki and gain powers like the Z Fighters. For example, Gohan easily teaches Videl how to use ki to fly. Though less common, intelligent anthropomorphic (and sometimes non-anthropomorphic) animals such as Oolong and Puar are integrated into the population and are well-adjusted and are also accepted as people. Even so, the anthropomorphic population sees a drastic and noticeable decline over the course of the series, but it never goes away completely. Creatures and devices used in the Dragon World also vary greatly, as is common in works such as Dragon Ball. Dinosaurs and other extinct creatures in the real world still roam on Earth freely, while the characters fly around in futuristic levitating cars, and houses can be shrunk down to the size of portable capsules. Tragedies The first known series-related tragedy took place some 300 years prior to the beginning of Dragon Ball. When King Piccolo first made himself known to the world, he spawned several underlings and sent them to destroy a city and all its inhabitants. Outside that city was Mutaito's dojo, where Master Mutaito and his students trained. The underlings attacked the dojo, and in the aftermath, the monsters and all but two of the students were dead. These two students, Master Roshi and Master Shen, and Mutaito managed to live to fight another day and went their separate ways until Mutaito's rematch with Piccolo, by which time most of Earth's population had been eradicated by the evil Namekian. In his final battle, Mutaito sealed Piccolo away with the Evil Containment Wave, after which the Earth returned to normal until Piccolo's brief resurgence as a villain in Age 753. Over the course of the series, the Earth and its population went through many trials and tribulations. When Garlic Jr. arrived, he used the Black Water Mist to infect Earth's population and transform them into evil beings. In the Cell Saga, Future Trunks told Goku about the Androids, who, he explains, killed off most of Earth's population in his timeline. Coupled with the threat of the Androids, Cell killed thousands and proceeded to host a martial arts tournament, in which failure to defeat him meant the Earth's certain doom. In the Majin Buu Saga, Majin Buu destroyed entire cities at a time, killing millions. When he transformed into Super Buu, he was able to effect a nearly perfect genocide upon the Earth with a single attack. Finally, Kid Buu used a powerful energy blast to blow up the Earth. It was eventually restored with the Namekian Dragon Balls, due to their Dragon Balls being destroyed. The planet was threatened again by the evil Baby years later in Dragon Ball GT. The gates of Hell were also opened by Dr. Gero and Dr. Myuu, but eventually closed. When the evil Shadow Dragons attacked, Earth and its population once again came close to extinction, only to once again be saved by the Z Fighters. Kid Buu has the distinction of being the only villain in the entire Dragon Ball series to actually succeed in destroying the planet; Vegeta, Frieza, Cell, Baby and Omega Shenron all claimed that they would, though they were thwarted by the Z Fighters before doing so. In Dragon Ball GT, the use of the Black Star Dragon Balls caused the Earth to explode again. It was later restored. Key locations The following is a list of significant locations as translated from the above map, with edits made for context. They are presented sector-by-sector in a north-to-south format: )]] :A1-1. Yunzabit Heights (ユンザビット高地) :A1-2. Yahhoy (ヤッホイ) :A1-3. Cell's arrival site Trunks' [[Time Machine]] (セルの到着地点) :A1-4. Majin Buu's house (ブウのおうち) :A2-1. Rocky Canyon,Dragon Ball Z: Buu's Fury, 2004 Goku and Majin Vegeta's battle site (悟空とベジータの戦闘地点) :A2-2. Northern Wastelands,Dragon Ball Z: The Legacy of Goku II, 2003 arrival site of Goku's spaceship (悟空の宇宙船到着地点) :A2-3. Cell Games Arena (セルゲーム会場) :A2-4. Northern Wastelands, Frieza (and King Cold)'s arrival site (フリーザ到着地点) :A2-5. Ginger Town (ジンジャータウン) :A2-6. Central City (中の都) :A3-1. North City (北の都) :A3-2. Dr. Gero's Laboratory (ドクター·ゲロの研究所) :A3-3. Mountain Road, site of battle with Android 17 and Android 18 (17号18号との戦闘地点) :A3-4. Town where Android 18 steals clothes (18号が服を奪った町) :A3-5. Site where Piccolo meets Raditz (ピッコロ·ラディッツ接蝕地点) :A4-1. Muscle Tower (マッスルタワー) :A4-2. Jingle Village (ジングル村) :A4-3. Temporary camp of Silver's platoon (シルバー小隊仮設キャンプ) :A4-4. Spinach WastesDragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans, 2009 arrival site (ラディッツ到着地点) :A4-5. East City (東の都) :B1-1. Sacred Land of Korin (聖地カリン) :B1-2. Barren Wasteland, Super Buu and Gotenks' battle site (ブウとの戦闘地点) :B1-3. Red Ribbon Army Headquarters (RR軍本部) :B1-4. Town where Mercenary Tao steals clothes (桃白白が服を奪った町) :B1-5. Giran's Village (ギランの村) :B2-1. West City (西の都) :B2-2. Parsley City (パセリシテイ) :B2-3. Gizard Wasteland where Vegeta decides to fight Goku (ベジータとの決闘地点) :B2-4. Break Wasteland training field (悟飯の修行場) :B3-1. Master Roshi and King Piccolo's battle site (亀仙人とピッコロ大魔王の戦闘地点) :B3-2. Pilaf's Castle (ピラフ城) :B3-3. Yamcha's hideout (ヤムチャの隠れ家) :B3-4. Rabbit Group's town (ウサギ団の町) :B4-1. Satan City (サタンシテイ) :B4-2. Aru Village (ウーロンの村) :B4-3. Grandpa Gohan's house (孫悟飯の家), also Mount Paozu :B4-4. Pirate Cave (海賊の洞窟) :C1-1. Southwest Forest, hiding place of Babidi's spaceship (バビディの宇宙船の し場所) :C1-2. Nam's Village (ナムの村) :C1-3. Fortuneteller Baba's Palace (いババの宮殿) :C1-4. City StreetDragon Ball: Advanced Adventure, 2004 of Pilaf's duel with Goku (ピラフとの決闘地点) :C2-1. Town where Goku buys clothes (悟空が服を買った町) :C2-2. Southern Continent, Android 19 and Goku's battle site (19号との戦闘地点) :C2-3. Yajirobe's Prairie of [[Yajirobe]'s encounter with Goku] (ヤジロベーとの遭遇地点) :C2-4. South City (南の都) :C2-5. Amenbo Island where the [[Android]s appear] (19号20号の現われた島) :C3-1. Fire Mountain (フライパン山) :C3-2. Island where Cell achieves his "perfect form" (セルが完全体になった島) :C3-3. Papaya Island (パパイヤ島) :C3-4. World Tournament Stadium (天下一武道会会島) :C4-1. Temporary camp of Blue's company (ブルー中隊仮設キャンプ) :C4-2. Kame House (カメハウス) :C4-3. Gengoro Island, location of Penguin Village (ペンギン村) :C4-4. Training Island (修行の島) :C4-5. Island where Android 17 fights Piccolo (17号と闘った島) Real world locations referenced in Dragon World *In one scene in the Emperor Pilaf Saga, Pilaf is dancing around holding a globe that has the continents in the same shape as the real world, not of Dragon World. *Krillin is reading a newspaper that is titled "USA News" in the Tournament Saga. This is odd because the United States does not exist in Dragon World. *General White was once implied to be from Russia (or more specifically, the Soviet Union). *Ninja Murasaki hides behind an American flag. *In the final episode of the General Blue Saga Arale knocks General Blue all the way to Egypt. *In "Which Way to Papaya Island?" when Goku and Konkichi are at the Yahhoy airport, the sign in the background lists several real world cities. *When trying to figure out a way to avoid King Piccolo and his sons, Oolong exclaims that he heard flights to the Caribbean were cheap that time of year. *In "Global Training", Piccolo is seen practicing his mental techniques on the pyramids similar to that of Egypt in preparation for the arrival of the Saiyans. *In movie #7, ''Dragon Ball Z: Super Android 13!, Krillin, Master Roshi, Future Trunks and Oolong are in line to see a beauty pageant where they mention Russia, Spain, France, and Australia, even though none of these places are supposed to exist in the Dragon World. It should be noted that those country names were dub-added. *In movie #8, Dragon Ball Z: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan, Gohan calls Krillin the best singer in Japan. This was in the original Japanese version. *In movie #9, Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound, the location of the fight between Future Trunks and Kogu heavily resembles London, England. *In the "VizBig" edition of the manga, when Master Roshi first mentions the Kame-hame-ha, on Frypan, Oolong mumbles about the king of Hawaii, whose name is "Kamehameha". This is inconsistent for two reasons. *''Dr. Slump, a series that takes place in the same world, has several real world references as well. Gallery References Category:Planets